


You did this?

by redex_writes



Series: AWO Fictober 2020 [3]
Category: A Way Out (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Established Relationship, Fluff, Leo Is A Good Boyfriend, M/M, Post-Canon, Post-Canon Fix-It, Vincent Moretti Is Bad At Feelings: The Musical, he's trying his best though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-03
Updated: 2020-10-03
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:47:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26789923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redex_writes/pseuds/redex_writes
Summary: Fictober prompt 3Vincent struggles with the difference between his and Leo’s love languages.
Relationships: Leo Caruso/Vincent Moretti
Series: AWO Fictober 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1941064
Comments: 5
Kudos: 32
Collections: A Way Out Fictober 2020





	You did this?

To Vincent, being with Leo just seemed...natural. Like it was something they were meant to do. Fleeing from California with a volatile and distrustful criminal had been extremely difficult, but as time passed, he hadn’t once regretted it. They made a good team, and it hadn’t taken long for their tentative, uneasy partnership to turn to friendship, and then...something more.

If he was honest with himself, Vincent couldn’t even remember the first time they’d kissed. It might’ve been the particularly chilly evening when they’d gotten snowed in at a motel, or maybe the morning he’d woken up with his legs tangled with Leo’s. All he knew for sure was that the further they got from California the closer they got to each other, and by the time they finally felt safe enough to stay in one place, the thought of going separate ways didn’t even cross either of their minds.

Leo was unexpectedly affectionate. It made sense, Vincent thought; he wasn’t a very private person, and showed his emotions almost as deeply as he felt them. Knowing that didn’t stop the pleasant surprise he’d felt at first when Leo would so casually wrap an arm around Vincent’s waist while he got ready in the morning, or lean in for a kiss when he’d catch Vincent’s gaze lingering across the dinner table. It didn’t take long for him to grow accustomed to it though, and he found that he quite liked the easiness that grew with each little gesture.

He, on the other hand, was practically hopeless when it came to those sorts of things. Where Leo was open, he was stifled; where Leo turned little things into sweet gestures, he had trouble translating his feelings into words. He knew that he loved Leo--actually, that was one of the only things he knew for sure anymore--but it had taken him ages to finally say the words, and that was only after Leo had said them first. It’d been simple, casual, and honest; just like everything else he did.

Leo was unendingly patient, and Vincent was unendingly grateful for it. He knew how to translate Vincent’s silence and vague remarks, and when Vincent would get stuck in a loop of awkward coughs and frustrated hand gestures, he’d just shake his head with a fond grin and pull him in for a kiss. Vincent would almost always roll his eyes and grumble half-hearted protests, but he knew that Leo could feel him smiling against his lips.

Still, he felt bad that he couldn’t show Leo the same sort of affection he was giving him. He’d brought it up once, but Leo was adamant that it wasn’t something he had to worry about.

“I don’t need any sort of grand gesture to know how you feel, Vince.” He’d gently bumped his shoulder against Vincent’s, giving him that soft smile that Vincent was so damn weak for. “You say it more than enough.”

“Are you kidding?” Vincent argued, shooting him a look. “You say it twice as much, and I can hardly get my damn words out half the time.”

Leo had just shook his head. “You don’t need words to say that sort of thing.”

And maybe he was right, but that didn’t mean that Vincent was just going to let it go.

+++

The idea came to him completely by chance.

He was walking home with a bag of groceries, trying to remember if Leo had said he would be back by five or six, when movement from the corner of his eye caught his attention. He was just passing the thrift shop--a small, unremarkable building that he’d walked past many times before. He knew the town well enough by that point to know that every few weeks the small staff who ran the place would change out their window displays, but he’d never really paid much attention to what they were selling. However, as he watched a worker set out their new products, something caught his eye that made him forget all about the groceries. Without fully thinking it through, he doubled back towards the door, mind already racing.

The little bell in the doorway jingled, and the woman who’d been setting up the window display turned, looking surprised. She quickly donned an easy smile, straightening up and walking over.

“Welcome! May I help you?”

Vincent nodded towards the window.

“How much for the banjo?”

+++

The woman in the store had been friendly and very helpful, and had offered to wrap the banjo in brown paper to keep it from damages. She’d also recommended that Vincent purchase a new pack of strings, as the ones on the instrument already were quite old and brittle.

“We don’t get as many donations as we’d like,” she’d said as she wrapped up his purchase, “so sometimes we take in things that aren’t quite fit for selling and market them as restoration projects. This particular item is a bit...rough around the edges, so I wasn’t expecting it to sell so quickly.”

Unwrapping the banjo later, Vincent noted that she hadn’t been lying. It certainly looked its age; the fret board was uneven and splintering slightly, and many of the metal fixings were rusting.

Vincent wasn’t as handy as Leo, who had an almost uncanny knack for tinkering and finding unique solutions to fixing things. He did know enough to get by though, and it was a simple instrument. How hard could it possibly be?

+++

He answered his own question fairly quickly. Over the course of the next week, Vincent kept his little project hidden away under the bed, pulling it out to work on it whenever Leo was out. He learned right away that fixing something that was supposed to make a very specific sound was more complicated than some haphazard sanding and replacing screws. By the time the weekend came around, his hands were covered in splinters, and he was about ready to throw the whole thing away. Under any other circumstance, he would’ve; but it was different with Leo. It was always different with Leo.

Which was why he stuck with it, despite the splinters and his mounting frustration. He continued to work on the instrument in secret, and he was determined to finish it, no matter how many times he had to bandage his fingers.

“Shit!”

Vincent hissed in pain as he caught his thumb on a piece of jagged metal on the frame, snatching his hand away and inspecting the damage. He’d nicked his fingers on the same part a few times, and as he watched, a bead of blood began to well up from the cut, and he cursed under his breath as he got up and went to wash it in the bathroom sink.

He didn’t hear the door open over the sound of running water, but he _did_ hear it slam shut, and his eyes widened. Not bothering to dry his hand, he ran out to the kitchen where he had the disassembled banjo parts spread out over the table.

Leo had already noticed by the time Vincent made it to the kitchen, and was staring at the table with a bemused look on his face. He looked up at Vincent, who was cradling his wet hand to his chest with a flustered look, then back down at the table.

“What…”

He sighed defeatedly, dropping his hand to his side. “It was supposed to be a surprise.”

He watched Leo lean over the table, a disappointed lump in his gut. He’d been determined to finish the instrument and present it to Leo once it was fixed up all nice, but instead he had all of the parts scattered on their kitchen table, looking a hundred times worse than the day he’d bought it.

Leo ran his hand over the neck of the banjo, then looked up at Vincent. The look in his eyes gave Vincent pause; they looked surprised but warm, soft.

“You did this?”

Vincent shrugged half-heartedly. “It was on display at the thrift store. I remembered how you used to play, and I thought--I don’t know. It was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing, I don’t know how to fix a banjo, I don’t even know anything about--”

He was cut off when Leo closed the distance between them in two steps and dragged him into a kiss. He could feel Leo grinning against his lips, and when he pulled away, his eyes were sparkling in a way that made Vincent’s heart stutter.

“You did this,” he repeated, sounding incredulous and amused and so, so fond. Vincent nodded, a little lost for words.

Leo shook his head and pulled him in for another kiss, still smiling widely. 

“You’re an idiot,” he said when they separated, but he gently held Vincent’s face all the same. “How can you be so smart but so, so stupid?”

Vincent raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to react to that.”

Leo laughed, turning to gesture at the table.

“You literally saw an old ass instrument in a thrift store, and you thought that I’d like it enough that you bought it, took it home, and tried to make it playable? Vince, that’s one of the sweetest things anyone’s ever done for me.”

Vincent sighed, looking dejectedly at the table. “Well, that was the idea, but it turns out I know nothing about fixing banjos, or banjos in general.”

Leo shook his head again, still looking at Vincent affectionately. “You’re missing the point.” He took Vincent’s hand, his eyes turning serious.

“I love it. I love it because I love _you_ , and the way you show you care. You always try to make things perfect, but you need to realize that isn’t how life works. Nothing is perfect Vince, but you make it as close as it can be just by being your stubborn, dumbass self.”

He couldn’t hold back a smile then, squeezing Leo’s hand. “Again, I’m not sure whether I’m supposed to be offended by that or flattered.”

“Both.”

Vincent huffed out a laugh in the space between them, following it with another soft kiss. 

“So,” he said when they pulled apart again. “You want to help me finish fixing it up?”

Leo raised his eyebrows. “What makes you think I know how to do that?”

He stared at him. “You don’t?”

Leo shook his head. “Just because I play doesn’t mean I have any idea how they go together. I’m just about as clueless as you are with that.”

They both looked over at the table and all of the pieces laying scattered on it. Vincent blew out a long breath.

“Well, fuck.”

Leo chuckled, pulling him in to kiss his cheek.

“We’ll figure it out. We always do.”

Vincent smiled to himself as Leo pulled away to hang up his coat.

“Yeah,” he murmured. “I suppose we do.”

**Author's Note:**

> Listen, I just...love them so much.  
> Thank you for reading! Happy Saturday!


End file.
